Tool of North America has launched an influencer director division. The new entity hits the market with its first director, Wesley “Wuz Good” Armstrong, a noted social influencer (3.1 million followers) and content creator. Leading the new Tool division is Alexandra DelHoyo, director of influencer partnerships, who brought Armstrong on board. DelHoyo previously served as director, influencer partnerships, for seven years at influencer agency, theAudience.
With 25 years of experience helping brands define their voices and connect to audiences across content, experiential and digital campaigns, Tool views its influencer division as a means to assist influencers advance their careers in film and commercial direction.
“We felt the need to build this division to provide a clear path for social content creators to showcase their creativity, charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent through commercial and film production,” said Erich Joiner, founder at Tool of North America. “Influencers are in actuality deeply creative digital natives with filmmaking acumen. What differentiates influencer directors from other directors is their ability to combine creative and media into one driving force. They can blend a creative vision with a large social following, and the result is just incredible. The talent is there, and we have the opportunity to work with these creators to usher in the next generation of commercial filmmakers.”
Armstrong, who sits at the intersection of filmmaking and social media influence, has produced branded entertainment for brands such as Lyft and T-Mobile. His original series Couples Night became one of the most popular shows for Facebook Watch and earned him a Best Director’s nomination at the 2018 Streamy Awards. Manager Byron Ashley of Settebello Entertainment and attorney Roger Patton represent Armstrong.
Armstrong related, “I have spent the past decade creating branded content for the web, and I know that with Tool, I’ll have the firepower to level up and expand my career into major commercials.”
DelHoyo added that Tool’s “mission is to help our partners make more, impactful connections with audiences by equipping today’s top social influencers with world-class resources to elevate their craft and deliver exceptional content for our clients. These storytellers blend creative vision with social marketing expertise to create compelling branded content for a built-in audience. We are proud to partner with Wes and help him take the next step in his career as an artist and creator. We hope to become a haven for more talent looking to follow in his path.
Tool of North America’s influencer division also recently completed a project with Amazon Prime Video with future campaigns slated to roll out before the new year.